PAPER MANAGEMENT

Sort incoming papers into the following primary groups:

                                                                        TO DO’s (Working Papers)

                                                                        TO READ

                                                                        TO FILE

                                                                        THROW AWAY/RECYCLE

Sometimes you may have papers that you’re unsure what to do with or you don’t have time to figure out what to with them – set these aside in one place.  (These items should be things where nothing consequential will happen if you don’t look at them again for quite awhile.)  You can periodically go through them to find something you remember might be there or to discard.  But most of these items should never end up in your files.  Ideally, you can put them in a drawer or a tray and once it is full, most of it will be out of date and can be thrown away. 

ANY PAPERS YOU KEEP, YOU NEED TO:

            Have a place for it.

            Decide how to label it.

            Put it away.

            Have a method for knowing you have that information.

            Eventually discard or store as archival records.

All of the above takes time!   Typically only 20% of what we file is ever accessed, so the fewer things that end up in your files, the better.

Of the items you keep, there are 3 overall kinds of papers/information:

            WORKING

            CURRENT REFERENCE

            ARCHIVES

Current & Archives fall into 2 main categories:

Records (Receipts, legal documents, insurance, tax returns, completed projects, etc.)

Reference Information (Articles on possible vacations, financial information that is not specific to you, catalogs, class notes, etc.)

Getting Off Junk Mail Lists:

Go to www.newdream.org/junkmail/form.html

To stop receiving the following local publications:

            Pennysaver – call 858-576-6137

            Val-Pak – call 858-560-7606

            Advo – send your full address & request to be removed to:

                        PO Box 249

                        Windsor, CT  06095